White Cloud Pine-Crane Palm

Chen Fan followed the direction of the girl's finger and looked toward the two classes.

Each class had around twenty or thirty students, all engaged in basic physical training.

Chen Fan had his golden finger. As long as he obtained subsequent martial arts or cultivation methods, he could learn them; the instructor's level was not important to him.

Looking at the two, he said, "Whichever master's class started later, I'll join that one."

He had no knowledge of martial arts basics and had never undergone foundational training, so naturally, he wanted to start from the basics.

Besides, he still had three martial arts he had not fully cultivated through idling. He needed time anyway, so there was no rush.

The girl smiled faintly. "Then it's the Black Cloud Class."

Master Feng Cong of the Black Cloud Class was a sturdy, bearded man. His entire body radiated an imposing aura, and he looked like someone not to be trifled with.

The girl's eyes shifted as she gave Chen Fan another look.

"Master Feng Cong is one of the most formidable instructors at the White Cloud Martial Academy. Many disciples from great families specifically ask to join the Black Cloud Class. It can be called an elite class!"

Chen Fan was also taken aback, privately thinking that his luck was not bad.

He was brought before Feng Cong.

After a brief introduction, he joined the class.

For Chen Fan, he could directly learn martial arts, have them engraved in his mind, and automatically form muscle memory for the moves. But he had never undergone even the most basic training.

Thus, the Black Cloud Class's early foundational training was still somewhat helpful to him...

There were twenty-five people in the Black Cloud Class altogether.

The students were generally quite young.

Chen Fan was already considered one of the older ones among them.

Most were twelve or thirteen. The oldest was no more than fifteen, while the youngest was already over eleven.

There were no students of seven or eight.

Back near his home on the outskirts of the county, Chen Fan had been considered relatively tall among his peers. At thirteen or fourteen, he was already close to 1.7 meters tall!

But at the martial academy, that was nothing unusual.

Among those his age, the tallest had even reached 1.8 meters!

That person was actually a year younger than Chen Fan.

These wealthy young masters had been clothed in brocade and fed on delicacies since childhood. They might even have encountered basic martial arts at a very young age, with dedicated teachers laying their foundations. Even if their talent was lacking, years upon years of accumulation naturally would not be poor!

Why were children from wealthy families more likely to achieve something in martial arts? It was because they grew up in privileged environments from childhood, their physical foundations far surpassing ordinary people's!

Even Chen Fan, who had now cultivated several strength-training arts, did not dare claim that his physique was necessarily stronger than that of every peer his age.

Chen Fan also spotted someone he knew among them—the young master of the Great Passage Trading Company, Su Qingyang!

Unfortunately, Chen Fan knew him, but Su Qingyang did not know a mere young clerk from the accounting office like Chen Fan.

In the Black Cloud Class, nine out of ten were children of wealthy families.

Their clothing alone revealed the gap in their family backgrounds.

Among these twenty-odd students, including Chen Fan, there were only three children from ordinary families. The three of them naturally gathered together.

The other wealthy children also divided themselves into more specific groups according to the differences in their family backgrounds.

At the heart of it all were several disciples from aristocratic families.

Of course, although the students had different connections, they rarely provoked one another.

After all, they were all newcomers to the martial academy, entering a new environment, so they all reined themselves in somewhat.

No matter how unruly their temperaments, they could not possibly go looking for trouble at a time like this.

Still.

Not provoking one another did not mean their relationships were particularly good.

The natural gulf in status made it difficult for people from different groups to truly get along well.

Chen Fan also noticed that some of his classmates clearly came with martial arts already under their belts.

The difference was obvious in their physical fitness and their training standards!

This made Chen Fan even more puzzled.

In a world of martial arts like this, it was not strange for children of aristocratic families to practice martial arts from a young age. The question was, since their families possessed martial arts manuals and inheritances, why had they specifically come to a martial academy to study?

Chen Fan paid particular attention to this.

It was worth mentioning that—

Although Feng Cong looked like he was all muscles, he was actually quite amiable. He treated every student equally and was a rare good teacher.

Several days later, after they had completed some basic martial arts training, Master Feng Cong finally began teaching them real martial arts.

Or rather, the so-called strength-training manuals!

Feng Cong stood before the twenty-odd young men and women, his voice loud and full of vigor.

"So-called strength-training manuals are also called foundational martial arts. Though they are called martial arts, they are not truly martial arts meant purely for combat, but training methods used to temper the body!"

Chen Fan had already completely mastered seven strength-training manuals, so he naturally knew what they were.

Still, this was his first time hearing someone systematically introduce them.

He had also verified it himself. Many of the seven martial arts required fixed postures, and one had to constantly mind the subtle details without the slightest error. They lacked flexibility and were not suited for direct use in actual combat.

"Though they are only foundational martial arts, they also place demands on the physique. Therefore, martial artists generally begin cultivating strength-training manuals only after the age of twelve, once their bodies have begun to develop!"

Chen Fan understood at once. No wonder the students were generally not too young!

Chen Fan could not help looking around at the other students.

Those wealthy children indeed looked young. Nearly all the wealthy disciples who had come were twelve or thirteen!

Of course, there were always exceptions. Wealthy children received careful nurturing from an early age, and some began tempering their bodies within their limits while still very young. There would always be a few who developed early and could begin cultivation one or two years ahead of schedule.

Chen Fan guessed that there were definitely people like that in his class!

"The White Cloud Martial Academy possesses thirty-three strength-training manuals in total, divided into three grades! First grade is the best, third grade the worst. The body-tempering effects between grades differ like heaven and earth. Even the worst second-grade strength-training manual is several times more effective than the best third-grade manual!"

Feng Cong's face was full of pride and confidence. "Among them, there is only one first-grade manual, the most powerful and effective of all. It is called White Cloud Pine-Crane Palm, and it is the true core of our White Cloud Martial Academy!"

As he spoke, his voice paused, and his gaze fell upon several richly dressed boys and girls in the class.

They were precisely the few with the best family backgrounds in the class!

Their eyes all gleamed with eagerness.

Then their gazes swept over Chen Fan as well, lingering for only an instant.

Feng Cong smiled slightly. "I also know that many of you have long cultivated other strength-training manuals. Yet you still chose to join the White Cloud Martial Academy because of this martial art."

Hearing this, Chen Fan understood.

Why did some of the boys and girls already know martial arts?

Strength-training manuals were used to lay the foundation for entering the martial path and strengthen one's qi and blood. Naturally, the firmer the foundation, the better. These people had inherited manuals at home yet still enrolled in the martial academy; they must have come for this White Cloud Pine-Crane Palm!

He just did not know whether the great families lacked any strength-training manual comparable to White Cloud Pine-Crane Palm.

Or did this manual possess some other special quality?

Could it cultivate some kind of special inner breath?